Sex

Two Billion Years of Procreation and Recreation

David Baker

$34.99

Paperback

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English

Black Inc
03 October 2023

Social & cultural history; Society & Social Sciences; Social issues & processes; Sociology: sexual relations

"The big history of sex from early life to sexbots

'I hope the reader of this book doesn't blush easily.

They're in for a bit of a wild ride . . .'

How did sex begin? How did it evolve to be so varied and complex in humans? What influence does our genetic ancestry have on our love life today? And what might sex look like in the future?

Sex traces where all the facets of human sexuality came from, starting at the creation of sex approximately 2 billion years ago and chasing it down our evolutionary family tree - from dinosaurs to primates and the earliest humans - until we arrive at the present, revealing why humanity's baffling array of passions, impulses and fetishes are the way they are.

From the basic chemical process of two microbes sharing DNA to the modern phenomena of Tinder and OnlyFans, author David Baker guides the reader towards a clear understanding of one of the deepest and most abiding forces of human nature. He looks at how sex changed for humans across the foraging, agrarian and modern eras, and how we arrived at a period in history where the present nature of our sex lives has no historical or evolutionary precedent. Baker then looks at the horizon to figure out where current trends may lead us, as humans navigate the brave new world of technology.

The result is a revealing and utterly unique insight into history and human behaviour - and the dance between Nature and Nurture in society.

With a foreword by Simon Whistler

'This is a well-researched, superbly written, often punchy, sometimes speculative, and always entertaining ""big history"" of the sexual activities that keep all species going from generation to generation ... By describing sexual behavior at the largest possible scales, Baker helps make sense of the revolutionary changes in sexual behavior taking place today.'-David Christian, bestselling author of Origin Story and Future Stories

'David Baker's wonderful book offers information, entertainment, and insight.' -Susan Quilliam, co-author of The Joy of Sex- The Ultimate Revised Edition"

By: David Baker
Imprint: Black Inc
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 155mm, Spine: 32mm
Weight: 410g
ISBN: 9781760643829
ISBN 10: 1760643823
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 03 October 2023
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

David Baker is a history and science writer for SimonWhistler.com who holds the world's first PhD in Big History. He has delivered award-winning lectures at Macquarie University and the University of Amsterdam, is a visiting lecturer at the University of Paris-Sorbonne, and wrote the YouTube series Crash Course Big History, hosted by John and Hank Green in partnership with the Gates Big History Project. He is also the author of The Shortest History of the World.